Refrigerator car construction



Sept- 12, 1939- K. E. ZEIDLER 2,172,686

REFRIGERATOR CAR CONSTRUCT ION Filed Sept. 18, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept- 12, 1939. K. E. ZEIDLER 2,172,686

REFRIGERATOR CAR CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept 18, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Emmflflflmm 1 I i 0 o o o o "I o o a i, 0 o E 0 o o o o o if 0 a 1;: m 0 m o c o o o g: 0 {ll Q l o o o o 0 II: a o o a o o L} I o a: Q o o 0 I I: o i l o m o o a o if. 0 o l o o 0 o o i}: 0 o I 6 o o o o q H o 0 I o o o o 5: {K o o I I o c a I 0 o a o o i I: o 1 0 0 22h I 1 K r m s g1 1 Q8 1 Q Sept. 12, 1939. I K. E: ZE|DLER 2,172,686

REFRIGERATOR CAR CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept. 18, v1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Sept. 12, 1939 UNITED STATES REFRIGERATOR GAR CONSTRUCTION Kurt E. Zeidler, Pittsburgh, Pa assignor, by

mesne assignments,

to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Delaware Application September 18, 1937, Serial No. 164,451

6 Claims.

The invention relates to insulated railway refrigerator cars used to transport perishable commodities, such as vegetables, fruits, berries, meats, eggs, frozen fish, etc., and to maintain such commodities while in transit within a predetermined range of temperature, thus necessitating the use of a cooling means in the summer and a heating means in the winter. It has been found that perishablecommodities which have not been allowed to get too cold (freeze) or too hot (bake) have a high market value because they have a longer storage life.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an ice supporting means or grate in the refrigerant chamber of a refrigerator car so that the air circulating between the refrigerant chamher and the lading compartment of the car will come in contact with the melted ice (water) and be further cooled thereby, and another object of the invention is to form such ice supporting means so as to provide metallic surfaces over which the water from the melting ice may flow and to expose such surfaces and water to the circulating air.

Another object is to provide an ice supporting means which may be readily installed in, or removed from, a refrigerator car and which is supported directly by the floor or understructure of the car.

Another object is to form such ice supporting means so that it may be easily made upon dies in a reciprocating press.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows a cross section of a refrigerator car equipped with my improved ice supporting means.

Fig. 2 shows a partial longitudinal section of the car shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a partial horizontal cross section of the car shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 a perspective drawing of the ice supporting means.

Fig. 5 shows a modified ice supporting means.

Fig. 6 shows a partial longitudinal section of a car equipped with a modified ice supporting means.

In the form of my invention illustrated the refrigerator car is provided with a bulkhead 2 separating the refrigerant chamber 3 from the lading compartment 4. The bulkhead 2 is provided with an aperture 5 adjacent the floor 6 of the car and an aperture 1 adjacent the ceiling 8 of the car with a solid wall therebetween.

A refrigerant is supported by the ice supporting means l2 in the refrigerant chamber 3 in l3 spaces the refrigerant and bulkhead 2 to provide The apertured floor rack it supports the lading so as to provide the space 29 which communicates with the flues l6ll. A refrigerant, such as ice in the refrigerant chamber, induces a convection circulation of air from the flues l6-ll, through the flue space and the apertures 2i in the floor rack l8, andas the air is warmed by the lading,it rises and passes through the bulkhead upper opening 7 and thence through the flues Iii-ll, and being cooled by the refrigerant, repeats the convection cycle.

When a stove or other heater-is placed in the refrigerant chamber a convection circulation of air is induced in the opposite direction because the air warmed by the heater rises and falls when cooled by the lading.

The means for supporting the'ice in the refrigerant chamber comprises a lower part resting upon the floor 6 of the car (or other part of the substructure) which is formed with a plurality of'portions 26 in one plane alternating with portions 21 in a higher plane connected by preferably diagonally disposed webs 28' and an upper part 30 formed with a plurality of portions 3! in one plane alternating with portions 32 in a lower plane connected by preferably diagonally disposed webs 33 with the portions 32 in said lower plane being supported by, and preferably secured to, (by Welding) the portions 21 in said higher plane, thus forming an integral unit which may be readily installed in the car.

The ice rests upon the upper portions 3! of the upper part 3|] and as the ice melts the resulting ice water spreads over the webs 32 and is contacted by the circulating air as it passes from the flue IE to the aperture 5, thus further cooling it. It may be desirable to cover the ice supporting means with a netting or other foraminous material 34 to prevent the ice from descending between the webs 33-33 as it melts and partially closing the flue between these webs.

The ice supporting means l2 extends only between the foraminous walls l3|3 of the ice basket so that the flues l 6l 1 extend uninterruptedly to the floor 5 of'the car thus providing means of communication between the fiues l6ll and the spaces between the webs 33-33 and 28-28 of the upper (30) and lower (25) parts of the ice supporting means.

The webs 33 of the upper part 30 of the ice supporting means II! are preferably provided with 6 of the car and the long slots 36 or otherwise perforated to allow the ice water to also flow over the sloping webs 28 of the lower part 25 of the ice supporting means l2 and contact the circulating air as it passes between the webs 28--28, thus further increasing the area of the water covered metallic surfaces of the ice supporting means in contact with the circulating air.

Fig. 1 shows the ice supporting means comprising a plurality of units wherein each unit is provided with side walls 38 connecting the marginal webs 33-28 of the upper and lower parts of the unit. The adjacent margins of adjacent units are covered by the caps 40 to keep foreign matter from getting between the adjacent walls 38. These caps 40 are secured to fixed elements of the car body to hold the units in place.

Figs. 5 and 6 show a modification wherein the ice supporting means comprises upper parts 42 with their marginal portions 43-44 overlapping and with the margins i546 of the lower part 41 also overlapping. The overlapping portions are preferably welded together. Fig. 6 shows a modification wherein the upper part 42 extends only between the foraminous walls I3-l3 of the ice basket and the lower part 41 extends between the bulkhead post 48 and the end wall l4 and the webs thereof are beveled (49) to allow the circulating air from the flue Hi to enter the spaces'5i) between the webs of the lower part 41 of the ice supporting means.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. In a refrigerator car having a bulkhead separating a refrigerant chamber from the lading compartment wherein said bulkhead is provided with upper and lower apertures, a foraminous wall spaced apart from a wall of the chamber to form a flue therebetween whereby a refrigerant in said chamber induces a convection circulation of air between the chamber and the compartment through said apertures and said flue, means to support a refrigerant in said chamber comprising a lower part resting upon the floor of the car and formed with a plurality of portions in one plane alternating with portions in a higher plane connected by webs, and an upper part formed with a plurality of portions in one plane alternating with portions in a lower plane connected by webs, the portions in the lower plane of the upper part being supported by and secured to the portions in the higher plane of the lower part.

2. A structure as defined in claim 1 wherein the webs of said upper part are perforated for the purpose specified.

3. A structure as defined in claim 1 including means to provide air communication between said flue, and the spaces below the portions of the lower part in said higher plane.

4. A structure as defined in claim 1 including a foraminous member resting upon the higher portions of said upper part.

5. In a refrigerator car having a bulkhead separating a refrigerant chamber from the lading compartment wherein said bulkhead is provided with upper and lower apertures, a forarninous wall spaced apart from a wall of the chamber to form a flue therebetween whereby a refrigerant in said chamber induces a convection circulation of air between the chamber and the compartment through said apertures and said flue, means to support a refrigerant in said chamber comprising a plurality of units, each unit resting upon the floor of the car comprising a lower part formed with a plurality of portions in one plane alternating with portions in a higher plane connected by webs, and an upper part formed with a plurality of portions in one plane alternating with portions in a lower plane connected by Webs, the portions in said lower plane being supported by the portions in said higher plane, and side walls connecting the marginal webs of the upper and lower portions.

6. A structure as defined in claim 5 including caps covering the adjacent margins of adjacent units, and means to secure said caps to fixed parts of the car.

KURT E. ZEIDLER. 

